Homemade Butterscotch Pie complete with a rich, brown sugary butterscotch custard, a flaky crust and fluffy whipped cream!
I’m sure everyone grew up with a grandma who kept a jar of hard candies in the house. It was always that same mix of peppermints, spearmints, strawberry-filled candies, cinnamon disks, and butterscotch disks. My favorite was the butterscotch disks! However, they did have a tendency to cut up the inside of your mouth….it was always worth it though.
Another butterscotch favorite that I’ve been obsessed with forever is butterscotch pudding. Surprisingly though, the only butterscotch pudding I’ve had is the instant mix and pudding cups. I’ve never had authentically HOMEMADE butterscotch pudding, which is an absolute shame when I think of how long I’ve been existing on this planet. This week, however, that would change…
One thing’s for sure, this Butterscotch Pie is lightyears above any ready-made butterscotch pudding you’ll find in the store. Honestly, I have no idea why it’s taken me so flipping long to make my own butterscotch pudding/custard from scratch when it’s so easy and tastes a million baJillian times better!
Butterscotch is also much easier to make than caramel. Caramel requires more time and precision since you have to watch the sugar closely as it toasts to the perfect golden hue. Butterscotch, on the other hand is way less finicky. All you have to do is stir some brown sugar, butter, and heavy cream together until boiling, then add a little salt and vanilla. No special instruments required and no possibility of overly burnt sugar!
Once the butterscotch is made, a few more ingredients are added to create that delicious butterscotch pudding. First, 3 cups of WHOLE milk are slowly stirred into the butter-sugar mixture. I emphasize the word, WHOLE, because you really don’t want to skimp on the milk. The higher fat content in whole milk lends a much creamier consistency to the custard than any 1% or fat free milk.
To thicken the custard up, some of the milk is reserved and whisked together with some cornstarch and a few egg yolks. This is then gradually added to the mixture, and cooked slowly until the custard thickens into that delicious custard-like consistency. To ensure optimum smoothness, but also to make sure no bits of cooked egg or globs of cornstarch end up in my pie, I like to pour the custard through a fine mesh sieve before pouring it into the pie shell.
The pie then takes a long nap in the refrigerator (preferably overnight) until it’s ready to be topped with a fluffy crown of freshly-whipped cream.
At this point the pie is ready to be eaten, HOWEVER, if you really want to impress you can add a bunch of butterscotch shavings like I did. It’s a lot easier than it looks, I promise! All you have to do is melt some butterscotch chips with a little coconut oil in the microwave. Pour the melted butterscotch onto the back of a clean baking sheet. Using an offset spatula, spread the melted butterscotch into a very thin layer, then allow it to set up. Once set, take a straightedged metal spatula or a bench scraper, and apply gentle pressure as you scrape the butterscotch forward.
Don’t worry if you can’t get the right curl or shape. I ended up with all sorts of shapes and sizes, but they looked really pretty piled together on top of the pie!
Instant butterscotch pudding mix might be convenient and all, but it will never compare to the richness and creaminess that this homemade Butterscotch Pie embodies…
Homemade Butterscotch Pie
Ingredients
Pie Dough:
- 3 Tablespoons water
- 1 Tablespoon sour cream
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 Tablespoons shortening cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter cold
Filling:
- 1 ½ cup packed brown sugar (I used dark)
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 cups whole milk divided
- 4 large egg yolks
- ⅓ cup cornstarch
Whipped Cream:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Butterscotch Curls (optional)
Instructions
Make the Crust:
- In a small bowl, combine the water and sour cream; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir the flour, sugar and salt together. Scatter the shortening over the flour, then use a cheese grater to grate the butter on top. Using a fork or a pastry blender, cut the mixture together until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add the sour cream mixture and use a stiff rubber spatula to stir and press the dough together until it forms one big mound. If dough is still too dry and doesn’t hold together, add another tablespoon of water.
- Turn the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap and flatten into a 5-inch disk. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least one hour.
- Once chilled, roll the dough out into a 12-inch circle and fit into a greased 9-inch pie plate. Trim, fold, and crimp the edge of the dough. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes until chilled and firm.
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. To blind-bake, I like to press a sheet of aluminum foil into the pie pan since it gets into the crevices better than parchment paper. I then pour two cups of granulated sugar on top of the foil, and use a spoon to press the sugar down into the foil. Place pie plate onto a baking sheet and bake until the edges of the crust are starting to brown, about 15-16 minutes. Remove pie from the oven and carefully lift the aluminum foil (with the sugar) out of the pie. Return the pie crust to the oven and bake until the bottom crust is golden brown, about 14-15 minutes longer. Remove and cool completely.
Make the Filling:
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together the brown sugar, heavy cream and butter until the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a full boil, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and stir in the vanilla and salt.
- Reserve 1/4 cup of the milk. Slowly add the remaining milk to the sugar mixture.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the 1/4 cup of milk, cornstarch, and egg yolks, until combined. Slowly pour the cornstarch mixture into the sugar mixture over medium-low heat and cook, stirring constantly, until thick, about 3-5 minutes.
- Strain the filling through a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl. Pour the filling into the prebaked pie crust. Place pie uncovered in the refrigerator for 1 hour before covering with plastic wrap and allowing to chill in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
Make the Whipped Cream:
- Once pie is set, whip the heavy cream with the powdered sugar in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream on top of pie. Top with butterscotch curls, if desired.